General Canby Day crosses ethnic and gastronomic lines on Independence Day

An American flag, at least eight feet long, sailed above a vintage burgundy Pontiac GTO. A halo of red, white and blue tinsel crowned the heads of Sarah Colarchik and her almost-4-year-old granddaughter, Madelynn Patterson.

And patriotic garlands draped along the Mexican Popsicle and taco booth -- which was next to the Salvadoran pupusa table, which was next to the Hawaiian plate lunch stand and down the way from the Job's Daughters' cotton candy booth -- bobbed up and down in the light summer breeze.

This was a July 4 celebration, small-town style, where neighbors outdid one another in patriotic dress, local residents' bands played in the gazebo and parking was plentiful and free.

The General Canby Day festival is "a real Americana kind of thing," said Colarchik, who had already hit the pancake breakfast with her granddaughter and her 1-year-old grandson, Trenton. It's a good place to remind you that "we live in the best place in the world. We do have freedoms and I like to celebrate that."

For Ricardo Frias, 10, the best part of July 4 festivities comes last -- the fireworks. But he, his mother, Eunice Urrutia, and his 8-month-old baby sister, Camilla, were listening to local bands' music on the grassy lawn of Canby's Wait Park, where the family has come to celebrate the holiday for years.

Urrutia, a legal resident who came to the United States more than a decade ago to work, reflected on the significance of the holiday to her. She said she immigrated to the country looking for a better life than she could live in Mexico and found that here. "Oregon is very beautiful," she said.

General Canby Day July 4th FestivalThousands turned out to celebrate the General Canby Day July 4th Festival. The festival features a pancake breakfast, live music, a parade through the downtown, a classic car contest and more than 70 craft and food booths centered around Wait Park.

For Jim Fourtner, who was celebrating Independence Day with his wife, his sister and mother, the day is about more than gathering with family.

"The Fourth means a lot to me," said Fourtner, who lives in the Hubbard area. "I have a deep love and appreciation for not only this country but also the price people paid to give birth to this country."

While the signers of the Declaration of Independence pledged their "lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor," too many people now seem to have a "real strong sense of entitlement" and are unwilling to make personal sacrifices, Fourtner said.

One man, wearing his military uniform and sitting in a wheelchair adorned with an American flag, similarly sought to share his message of patriotism. He could not speak, explaining with a pen on a notepad that he had an injury to his vocal cords. A former Marine and Vietnam War-era veteran, the man who wrote that his name is Joe Christian America described himself as a "conscientious patriot."

"We need a strong military," he wrote, and with a reference to Theodore Roosevelt, added, "Talk softly and carry a big stick."